The best proposal software for a solar installer is usually the one that builds the customer proposal from your system design, so the roof layout, the production estimate and the document the homeowner signs all come from one model. If you already design somewhere else, a general proposal tool can give you a polished, trackable document on top.
You've done the site visit, measured the roof, worked out the shading and sketched a system. Now someone has to turn that into a document a homeowner or a business owner will read at the kitchen table, believe and sign, and every hour between the survey and that signature is an hour a competitor can use to get there first.
That's the job proposal software does for an installer. The trouble is that the tools sold for it come from two very different places. Some were built by solar people and start from the panel layout. Others were built for sales teams in any trade and start from a blank, branded page. Neither is wrong, but picking the wrong kind means retyping design numbers into a template every week, or signing up for a design engine you never open. Below are eight tools, in no particular order and with no crowned pick, sorted by the job they take off your desk.
Three kinds of tool, sorted by the job they take off your desk
Design first, proposal from the same model
These are built for solar. You draw the system, and the proposal is produced from that design rather than typed up afterwards. Aurora Solar is aimed at residential installers and describes itself as running from design to signed permit. OpenSolar covers design, selling and project management for solar professionals. Arka360 leans towards commercial and industrial jobs, with simulation and proposal management alongside design.
Scanifly sits slightly apart. Its focus is design plus drone verification of the roof, so it suits crews who already fly a drone on survey day and want the design checked against what they captured.
A sales platform that runs the whole deal
Some installers don't need one more design screen. They need the enquiry, the design, the finance application, the contract and the project to stop sitting in five separate places. Enerflo is built for residential solar sales teams and connects CRM, design tools, financing, contracting and project management. Sunbase is a contractor platform for solar and roofing firms, covering CRM, estimating, proposals, projects and field work, which is handy if your crew does both trades.
General proposal tools that sit on top of your design
These weren't built for solar at all, and that's worth saying plainly. Proposify and Qwilr give you document layout, branding and tracking, with no solar design inside. They're a fair fit when you're happy with the design tool you already use and your real complaint is that your proposals look tired or you can't tell whether the customer has opened them.
For a wider look at that second group across every trade, see our guide to proposal software for small businesses, and if you're curious how AI writing fits into the document side, our roundup of AI tools that draft proposals covers it.
The eight at a glance
| Tool | Type | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Arka360 | Design and proposal, built for solar | Commercial and industrial installers |
| Aurora Solar | Design and proposal, built for solar | Residential installers, design to permit |
| Enerflo | Sales platform, built for solar | Residential sales teams with several tools to connect |
| OpenSolar | Design and proposal, built for solar | Installers wanting design and selling in one place |
| Proposify | General proposal tool | Installers who already design elsewhere |
| Qwilr | General proposal tool | Web-style proposals with buyer tracking |
| Scanifly | Design and drone checks, built for solar | Contractors who survey roofs by drone |
| Sunbase | Contractor platform, built for solar and roofing | Solar and roofing contractors running the whole job |
Every tool on this list, alphabetically and unranked
Each line below is drawn from what the tool's own website says it does. Where a line repeats a vendor's claim, it's labelled as theirs.
Arka360
Best for: Commercial and industrial solar installers who want design, simulation and proposal management in one tool; the vendor claims its AI-optimised designs come together quickly.
Aurora Solar
Best for: Residential solar installers who want design and sales software that runs from first design to signed permit, with what the vendor calls physics-based accuracy at every stage.
Enerflo
Best for: Residential solar sales teams that need CRM, design tools, financing, contracting and project management connected, which the vendor pitches as running from first knock to permission to operate.
OpenSolar
Best for: Solar professionals who want one tool to design, sell and manage solar projects; the vendor describes its software as free, as of Nov 2026.
Proposify
Best for: Installers who already have a design tool and want branded, professional-looking proposals, which the vendor says carry a deal from conversation to close.
Qwilr
Best for: Installers who'd rather send an interactive, web-style proposal and see how the homeowner engages with it, using what the vendor calls real-time buyer analytics.
Scanifly
Best for: Contractors who survey roofs by drone and want design software that, in the vendor's words, designs with AI and verifies with drones.
Sunbase
Best for: Solar and roofing contractors who want CRM, estimating, proposals, projects and field operations in one contractor platform built for those trades.
Why the numbers on the page should come from the design
Here's the decision most installers only notice after they've signed up. A solar proposal isn't a brochure. It carries a system size, a panel layout and a production estimate, and the homeowner is going to hold you to those numbers.
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The solar design tools on this list produce the system design and the customer proposal from the same model. Move a panel, and the proposal moves with it, because there's only one set of numbers. The general proposal tools work the other way round: they're very good at layout, branding and showing you when a document was opened, but they have no design engine, so the numbers have to come in from somewhere else. Usually that means copying them across from a separate design tool.
Copying isn't a disaster on a quiet week. It becomes one when a designer tweaks the array after the proposal has gone out and nobody updates the document, because now the customer is holding a page that doesn't match the system you're about to install. So the real question isn't which tool has the nicest templates. It's where your time goes. If you want design and quote in one step, start with the solar-built platforms. If you've already got a design tool your team trusts and the document is the weak link, a general proposal tool on top of it can be the better fit.
If your enquiries also include roofing or general building work, it's worth comparing how estimating software for contractors handles quotes, since some installers run both from one place.
A short test to run before you book a demo
Every demo uses a perfect roof. Bring one of yours instead and work through these.
- Take a real, awkward job. Pick a roof with shading or several faces and ask the vendor to build the proposal from it, not from their sample house.
- Change the design after the proposal exists. Move a few panels and check whether the proposal updates by itself or needs retyping.
- Follow the numbers. Ask where the production estimate comes from and who on your team would be responsible for checking it.
- Check what happens after the signature. Does the signed proposal flow into a contract, a project or your CRM, or does someone rekey it?
- Look at the document on a phone. Plenty of homeowners read proposals on a small screen, so open one there before you commit.
- Ask about incentives and finance wording. Rules on incentives, finance and consumer contracts vary by country and region, so check with your regulator rather than relying on a software template.
If you're still weighing up the wider stack, our guide to software for running a solar business looks beyond proposals at the rest of the job.
My plain advice for solar crews
If you're a small residential installer doing most of your own design, start with the solar-built design and proposal platforms. You'll save the most time by not typing the same numbers twice, and the homeowner gets a document that matches the system you'll fit. If you're doing more commercial and industrial work, look first at the tools that say so on their own pages.
If your problem is the mess between enquiry and install rather than the proposal itself, a sales platform or a contractor platform built for solar is where I'd look, because a prettier document won't fix five disconnected systems. And if you love your current design tool and only want proposals that look sharper and tell you when they've been read, a general proposal tool is a perfectly sensible choice. Just be honest with yourself about who's going to keep the numbers in sync, because that's the bit that bites.
Do you make proposal or design software for solar installers? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
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Frequently asked questions
What should solar proposal software include?
At minimum it should show the system design, the production estimate and the terms clearly enough for a homeowner to sign. The strongest setups produce the proposal straight from the design, so the numbers on the page always match the system you plan to install.
Can I use general proposal software for solar sales?
Yes, if you already have a design tool you trust. General proposal tools handle layout, branding and tracking well, but they have no solar design inside, so someone has to bring the numbers across from your design tool and keep them up to date.
Is design software the same as proposal software for solar?
Not always. Some solar tools focus on design and roof verification, while others produce the design and the customer proposal from the same model. Check whether the tool you're looking at builds the customer document or only the design.
Do I need a CRM as well as proposal software?
It depends how many leads you handle. A small installer can get by with a design and proposal tool, but a sales team chasing lots of enquiries usually needs something that tracks the deal from first contact to signed contract and handover to the install crew.
Which tools suit commercial solar rather than residential?
Look for tools whose own pages say they're built for commercial and industrial jobs. Many solar platforms are aimed at residential installers first, so read what each vendor says about the projects it's designed for before you book a demo.
Can proposal software handle incentives and tax credits for me?
Some tools let you show incentives or finance options on a proposal, but the rules vary by country and region and change over time. Check the current position with your regulator or tax authority and treat any numbers in the software as something to verify.
